The Knights Templar, a secret society whose rites and rituals are shrouded in mystery, are a familiar part of the Crusades story. Yet until now, very little has been known of their existence in Britain. Opening with their stunning rise to power in the twelfth century, Lord charts the spread and range of the political and economic worlds of Britain they inhabited, until their inquisitorial defeat two hundred years later. Lord¿s groundbreaking focus on Britain reveals new sites, sources and realms of the Templars. …

Acre, 1291. The last Crusader city in the Holy Land is about to fall. Two Knights Templar, obeying the grandmaster’s orders, manage to escape the invading Muslim army on the order’s last ship. New York City, nowadays. During the unveiling of an exhibition of some of the Vatican’s treasures, four men disguised as Templars attack the Metropolitan Museum and steal several artefacts, including a centuries-old decoder – a loss that horrifies the Church.

Lost treasure is the foundation of legends and lore, and the greatest lost treasure of all belonged to the Knights Templar. Now, from the medieval fortified cities of Europe to the holy lands of the Middle East and from a secret pirate island in the Indian ocean to America’s first great cities, renowned underwater explorer Barry Clifford and historian Scott Wolter are unearthing new evidence in an attempt to find hidden links between two of history’s most legendary sects, separated by 500 years: the medieval Knights Templar and 17th century pirates.